Baked Ham with Glazed Apricots and Bay Leaves

Preheat the oven to 170°C.

Glaze: Combine the glaze ingredients in a bowl and whisk until smooth. Refrigerate.

Ham: Remove the skin from the ham using your fingertips to gently prise it away, taking care not to damage the fat. Leave the skin on the hock. Score the fat around the circumference of the ham, 3 cm apart and just deep enough to hold half a bay leaf. Cut the bay leaves in half along the spine. Insert, cut edge down, into the cuts in the ham.

Place the ham in a large, aluminium foil-lined baking dish and pour in a little water. This stops the glaze from burning on the base of the dish. Spread the glaze thickly between the rows of bay. Roast in the oven for 1 hour, basting occasionally after 30 minutes. This gives the glaze time to set on the ham. After the ham has been cooking for 1 hour add the apricots to the pan and turn to coat in the sticky juices. Cook for 15 minutes then remove the ham from the oven. Take out the apricots with kitchen tongs and place on a plate. Arrange the apricots in rows, between the bay leaves, securing those on the side with half a toothpick if necessary.

Continue cooking and basting the ham until the glaze is deeply golden. Don’t forget to remove any toothpicks before serving. Allow to cool for 20 minutes before carefully lifting onto a serving platter.

To finish: Arrange the sprigs of bay over the ham hock and bind with kitchen string to secure.

Menu: Serve this with Strawberry, Mascarpone and Pistachio Bruschetta and Hot Smoked Salmon and Potato Gratins.